mulligan, 20 February 2009, Comments Off on Does Tim Finchem’s job as PGA Commissioner depend on Tiger Woods?Categories: Uncategorized

Who is the happiest person at Tiger Woods’s return to the PGA Tour? You guessed it, it’s PGA Commissioner Tim Finchem. In Tiger’s absence, the PGA Tour has suffered abysmal TV ratings, lost sponsors, and is less popular than maybe bowling in these tough economic times. The Buick Invitational, for example, was down 30% in attendance.

So what did Finchem say about Tiger’s return: “We are delighted that Tiger is returning to competition and look forward to watching him compete next week.”

As we’ve noted here and here, The Golf Blog believes that 2009 is a make or break year for Tim Finchem as Commissioner. It was his extravagant idea for the bloated and excessive FedEx Cup playoff system in golf, with $10 million escrow payouts to the winner. The FedEx Cup has failed to increase golf’s popularity, but it has increased the tour’s expenses. Who thinks Tiger Woods and Vijay Singh should get another $10 million on top of what they already make? Even worse, under Finchem’s tenure, the price of admission to PGA events has escalated, along with even the price of water, making it extremely difficult for average Americans to go to a PGA tournament. (I remember one tournament when we were all searched at the entrance and had to throw away our bottled water. It was a hot, humid August day if you’re wondering!) The past 9 months without Tiger Woods have proven one thing: the PGA Tour’s business success for the past decade can be attritubed to one man. And it ain’t Tim Finchem.